Social Networks = Business --Morgan

Beware of addictive behavior. When creating your organization’s policy, dictate how many hours per week your marketing consultant will put toward updating online profiles. Many of our members confessed to the addiction of social networks; draw the line between what is helpful and what is wasteful.

Be dedicated. When participating in social networks, it is important for your information to stay fresh. By providing content that is timely and fresh, you will keep people coming back—and not opting out because of stale or redundant story lines.

Maintain proper protocol. As with any marketing campaign, remember to be transparent, create trust, and avoid grammatical and typographical errors. Keep in mind that everything you create can be forwarded to others—and will be permanent in cyberspace.

If you keep the potential pitfalls at bay, social networks can enable your marketing campaign to deliver surprising results. To stay in the forefront, you must be open to new frontiers—and, by doing so, you will not only maintain current clients, but gain brand awareness and loyalty in the process. PI

—Suzanne Morgan

About the Author
Suzanne Morgan is founder and CEO of the annual Print Oasis Print Buyers Conference (www.printoasis.com) and Print Buyers Online.com, a free community of more than 12,000 print buyers whose member companies purchase more than $14 billion a year in printing. PBO conducts research on print buying trends and teaches organizations how to work more effectively with print suppliers. Morgan can be reached at smorgan@printbuyersonline.com.